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previous: SK Pickup "copies" rant -- 8/31/2002 4:31 PM

Re: Pickup "copies" rant

9/24/2002 11:02 PM
Weevil	Re: Pickup "copies" rant I am a player, and I have been mixing and matching poles, magnets, pots, wire, caps and jacks for some moons now. It's all about tone. The pickups are just another part of the equation that you can break down into more puzzle pieces. It's like the insanity stops when you want it to. Engineering types all have the same mission, if you can't make it better, make it mine. Yada yada yada. Guitar(tone)woods, thicknesses, construction methods and string suspension schemes all play a large part in the quest for tone. The thing that lets you match a pickup to a guitar for a decent shot at whatever tone you're trying to get is as much consistency as you can get in the frequency and output in a pickup. After years of using the stuff that Duncan, dimarzio, Bill Lawrence and some others make commercially available to us, I know the difference between a Tone Zone and A J.B. for example, and have a pretty good Idea how it would sound in a bright or dark SG because their pickups are consistent. What I'd like to see is the engineering knowledge that they have acumulated over the years about the components of a pickup and how they effect each other and the resultant sonic output. Some approximate guide lines in chart form would be nice. Like a coil chart based on some "standard" bobbin sizes with the differences in wire and winds defined. And a magnet table, with some "standard" shapes and materials and an approx- imation of their sonic personalities when mixed with certain coils/wire etc.... I'd buy 'em in a heartbeat. I'd also buy pre-wound bobbins, pole pieces, magnets, mounting hardware and other pickup stuff too If I could mix'n'match from the aforementioned charts. Like "Build your own Pickup" know what I mean? Maybe a couple of you real engineering guys could jam and line up the data. That would be great!

9/24/2002 11:02 PM

Weevil

Re: Pickup "copies" rant

I am a player, and I have been mixing and matching
poles, magnets, pots, wire, caps and jacks for
some moons now. It's all about tone. The pickups
are just another part of the equation that you can
break down into more puzzle pieces. It's like the
insanity stops when you want it to. Engineering
types all have the same mission, if you can't
make it better, make it mine. Yada yada yada.
Guitar(tone)woods, thicknesses, construction
methods and string suspension schemes all play
a large part in the quest for tone. The thing
that lets you match a pickup to a guitar for a
decent shot at whatever tone you're trying to get is as much consistency as you can get in the
frequency and output in a pickup. After years
of using the stuff that Duncan, dimarzio, Bill
Lawrence and some others make commercially
available to us, I know the difference between
a Tone Zone and A J.B. for example, and have a
pretty good Idea how it would sound in a bright
or dark SG because their pickups are consistent.
What I'd like to see is the engineering knowledge
that they have acumulated over the years about
the components of a pickup and how they effect
each other and the resultant sonic output. Some
approximate guide lines in chart form would be
nice. Like a coil chart based on some "standard"
bobbin sizes with the differences in wire and
winds defined. And a magnet table, with some
"standard" shapes and materials and an approx-
imation of their sonic personalities when mixed
with certain coils/wire etc.... I'd buy 'em in
a heartbeat. I'd also buy pre-wound bobbins, pole
pieces, magnets, mounting hardware and other
pickup stuff too If I could mix'n'match from
the aforementioned charts. Like "Build your
own Pickup" know what I mean? Maybe a couple
of you real engineering guys could jam and
line up the data. That would be great!